We own a 12-seater van. It's done us good service for 10 years. But we've been paying huge money towards maintenance and repairs. One mechanical problem after another. The mechanic seems to be not doing his job well. We recently fired our mechanic. We decided that he's incompetent for failing to use his mechanical abilities and training. But solely relied on our van's computer system. So, we found another one, John, who has proven his work to be credible. He uses his greased bare skilled hands, keen eyes in seeing what's wrong with our van. John has no understanding with computerized mechanisms of our van. So, he would not understand what the computer would say, anyway. Maybe, the programming is outdated. But John's skills are practiced and up to date; and his customer service trustworthy. I love the good old traditional fix-it mechanic!
My husband and I have a regular old-school mechanic that we take our cars to as well. He actually does understand all the computer junk, but doesn't rely on it when doing his thing. Sometimes...Occasionally, he will put one on a diagnostics machine for one reason or another, but very rarely as he doesn't have a machine of his own. (Kind of nice that he's "in" with some local dealers when it comes to things like that.) He is fast, dependable and affordable. He also works another full time job and is a volunteer fireman. I often think he either never sleeps or he has a clone or two that he keeps secret. At any rate, he has never failed us and we intend to keep using him for as long as he is in business.
Modern cars are so complicated that doing the work yourself is beyond the capability of a lot of people so finding a good mechanic is paramount. The diagnostic side of things now gives the mechanic more licence to ''pull the wool over the eyes'' of the customer if they are not clued up, so you have to be careful. Many vehicle faults can now be identified by plugging a laptop in to the engine and you find yourself paying for computer diagnostic tests even before any actual mechanical work has taken place. For those reasons i prefer to use an old style mechanic who doesn't rely on computers to identify vehicle faults.
These days motor vehicles are all or at least for the most part computerised. So any mechanic that does not have training in this will be at a disadvantage with these newer vehicles. The older vehicles will require someone who is an hands on mechanic no doubt. But computers cannot give information about all of a vehicles problems simply because sensors wont be everywhere on it.
Well, at least as far as maintenance is concerned, a good place in town, which might be something from a national chain or independent, could possibly save you from repairs in the future, assuming you don't get into accidents and other mishaps. For instance, an engine can possibly last for years with oil changes, just like a computer can last for years with a good utility cleaning program and anti-virus. Anyhow, as I was saying, if you happen to keep your vehicle well maintained, yet get into trouble as most of us do sometimes, then finding a good mechanic is a must. Perhaps finding one can be as easy as looking on Angies List or comparing reputations given by word of mouth. As comical as this sounds, sometimes mechanics might purposely do a bad job as part of a scam or because they have some political or other personal motivation. However, it's often difficult to prove.
I have a similar problem. I find the mechanics just not good enough and many are into cheating their clients. It is worse if you leave your car with them. You may find a newer problem emerging few days later. I am having hard time trusting them. It becomes imperative that you stand over them to get the job done otherwise they just keep stalling.
One neighbor used to be our mechanic. He was good and dependable until we found out about his anomaly. He was over charging us with the parts. And it appeared that we were spending more than bringing the car to the dealer's shop. So now we are back to the regular maintenance in the dealer's shop after some 5 years with the neighbor mechanic.
This happened to me with a white van I used to own which had problems after problems. I took it to the same mechanic for years he never seemed to get it fixed to last more than two months, but that was just a technique he used so I would be going back to him and of course keep paying for his services. Once I found that out I wanted to try my luck with another mechanic, luckily my dads cousin was an old school mechanic and fixed the van which was good for a year before I had to go make another repair, bottom line is the other mechanic was cheating.
Regarding a lot of work, you shouldn't pay then until the job is done. Otherwise, some people will take too much time. Of course, though, as a compromise, you can promise to pay half at the start and then the rest at the end. Nonetheless, with people you highly trust, you might be able to pay them the whole amount before work begins.
There is no doubt that this is a critical thing to have, because I can attest to wasting a lot of money by not having a person to go to who knows the car. They are hard to find though, so if you have a good mechanic, keep them.
@EditorsRHumansToo! Well, experience is the best qualification for any person to handle a job any kind. John by experience knows the in and out of a transportation mechanic. His skills did speak it well and enriched by his long experience of doing it. But nowadays everything is done by a computer. Anyway, it's up for you to still avail of John's service but he won't be perfectly doing his job when he gets old.
